Please submit only technical tips that will help other TidBITS readers better use their Macs, iPhones, iPads, and related software and hardware. All product announcements should be sent to releases@tidbits.com.

Tip title*

Your tip*

URL

Enter the URL to a Web page that supports your tip.

Linked text

Enter the name of the page linked above.

Your name*

Your email*

* indicates required fields

To help us avoid automated posts and spam, please enter the words below.

When you submit a tip, you give us permission to use it. Read our terms for more details. All submissions are reviewed before publication.

Our terms: By submitting a tip, you agree to assign TidBITS Publishing Inc., a non-exclusive, worldwide, perpetual license to reproduce, publish, and distribute your tip in connection with the TidBITS Web site and associated products in any media. You agree that you created the content you submitted, and that you have the right to assign us this license. You give us permission to use your name, but your email address won't be publicly displayed or shared. We review all submissions before publication, and reserve the right to select which submissions we feel are appropriate for our readers and to edit those we publish.

Our terms: We reserve the right to edit or delete any comment, so please post thoughtfully. We use your email address only to send you a one-time verification message confirming that you posted this comment. We also store your address to allow you to verify using other Web browsers in the future. For more info, see our privacy policy.

Fixing Save as Adobe PDF Crashes

There have been many reported instances of the "Save as Adobe PDF" workflow crashing regardless of application, but precious few workarounds or resolutions. In troubleshooting, I discovered that there were three instances of the "Save as Adobe PDF.action" in three different locations: /Library/Automator; ~/Library/Automator; and /System/Library/Automator. By eliminating all except the version in /System/Library/Automator, the workflow started behaving, and I was able to cut PDFs directly from the Print dialog.

Apple Unveils big iPod touch

In an effort to silence critics who consider the iPad nothing more than a big iPod touch, Apple is releasing a new device called "big iPod touch," with models available for pre-order as soon as Apple updates the online Apple Store today. 8 GB, 32 GB, and 64 GB options will cost $399, $499, and $599, respectively.

Apple spokesperson John Bigbooté said, "Ever since we announced the iPad in January, critics have confused it with a big iPod touch, but nothing could be further from the truth. So, to fill out our mobile product line and eliminate this confusion, we are announcing an actual big iPod touch today. Apple takes customer feedback seriously, and based on the responses to our announcement of the iPad we realized there was clear demand for a larger iPod. big iPod touch is available today for pre-order."

The new big iPod touch shares the dimensions of the iPad, but uses the processor, memory, and operating system of the current iPod touch. It will run all compatible iPhone OS applications, scaled up to the larger screen size, but it will not support iPad-specific applications. The big iPod touch's body uses the composite plastic materials of the iPod touch, as opposed to the aluminum construction of the iPad.

Bigbooté told us, "From Apple's perspective, the most exciting aspect of this announcement is that we were able to bring big iPod touch to market in record time thanks to proprietary Mac OS X tools running on high-end Mac Pro workstations." According to sources, Apple engineers were able to design the product quickly by loading their engineering diagrams in Apple's internal computer-aided design software and pressing Command-+ until the schematics were large enough, a feature not available on any Windows-based CAD package.

As a result of this design process, the screen resolution remains 480 by 320 pixels, but each pixel has been scaled up to fill the larger physical screen dimensions. The original iPod touch uses a 3.5-inch display, while the big iPod touch shares the iPad's 9.7-inch screen. Another consequence is that the headphone connector has been resized to accept the larger 1/4-inch phono plug instead of the common minijack plug. This enables customers to use high-end audiophile headphones without special adapters. However, standard Apple earbuds will require a 1/4-inch-to-minijack adapter, available in the Apple Store for $22.

In a press release, Apple CEO Steve Jobs stated, "A benefit of this truly special screen design is that iPod touch apps run natively on the device without scaling images or adding black borders. When you hold the device at the proper distance, the images magically come together for a superlative experience." The 55-year-old Jobs claimed that the screen size and resolution clearly differentiate the big iPod touch from the iPad while filling market demand for devices with larger pixel sizes that are more visible to baby boomers.

Actor, author, and occasional technology pundit Stephen Fry said, "Well as much as my publisher will beat me about the head and shoulders for voyeuristically gawping instead of tip-typing away at my book, we members of the more rapidly aging classes will make the big iPod touch a winner for Apple. I marvel at any device that I can use without a reconnoiter of the flat for my spectacles." Fry is 52 years old.

Another industry analyst, who wished to remain anonymous for no apparent reason, agreed. "This is another master stroke from Apple," he or she said, "instantly silencing iPad critics, filling a just-created gap in their product line, and appealing to a particularly affluent demographic in a single move." Wall Street analysts estimate that 1,500,000 units of the big iPod touch will be pre-ordered in the first week.

Reactions throughout the Apple world weren't entirely positive. Frequently quoted Apple skeptic Rod Benderleaf wrote on his Tumblr blog, "Like the iMac, iPod, and iPhone before it, big iPod touch is nothing original and is doomed to fail. Without a camera, USB port, or physical keyboard, there's no way it can compete with Microsoft's forthcoming Big Zune or a Linux-based netbook."

In a related development, Apple rumor sites are reporting evidence of additional new products in Apple's pipeline. The latest version of iTunes includes a hidden icon for a "big iPhone" that shares the same physical dimensions of the big iPod touch. Rumor site sources have also discovered references to an "iMac mini," complete with a tiny keyboard and mouse, and a rack-mountable "big Mac mini" that shares the physical footprint of an Xserve, but which reportedly uses a "special sauce" form of liquid cooling to reduce power consumption and heat generation.

"If these rumors are true, and all evidence indicates they are, Apple's strategy is nothing short of brilliant!" wrote a pseudonymous poster at AppleInsider. "By completing their product line with new size options, Apple is destroying the market for Apple criticism. I'm particularly hoping for the inevitable 'big iPhone,' since I have large hands and prefer baggy pants with roomy pockets."

Apple, as usual, refused to comment on the rumors, other potential products, or even whether the company is open today.

Comments about Apple Unveils big iPod touch(Comments are closed.)

Once again, Apple has silenced all its critics with one master stroke. I for one will be placing my order immediately. I was sorely tempted and very nearly broke the habit of a lifetime, by not purchasing a new technology products from Apple and considered going over to 'the dark side' and purchase the new Microsoft big Zune. But as always, Apple pulled me from the brink right at the last moment and have announced the release of this 'magical, breakthrough' piece of new technology. I on behalf of all of the other members of the 'Baby Boomer' generation would like to personally thank Steve Jobs from the bottom of my heart for big iPod Touch. Okay, lets click on this link and get my order in . . . . . what's this . . . . . 'Apple - Page Not Found' - 'Hmmmmm the page your looking for can't be found'. How disappointing is that!! Right, I'm going straight to the Microsoft site and ordering the big Zune!!!!!!

Am I ever glad to hear about this new development. I had just ordered 12 iPod Touch units. I had planned to glue them on to a piece of polished plywood in a rectangular arrangement and then to synchronize the twelve screens into one giant display. It wouldn't have come cheap, mind you, but it would have been the only one of its kind. Got the idea at the Toronto airport where I saw 12 screens arranged in a massive 3x4 array.

Since I only have 10 fingers, though, it will be difficult to run the 12 units, but I'll try to get a friend to assist me. I might also experiment with one of them there back scratchers, provided they make them with 12 fingers.

I will now promptly cancel my order for the 12 ipods and await the latest from Apple.

"Apple engineers were able to design the product quickly by loading their engineering diagrams in Apple's internal computer-aided design software and pressing Command-+ until the schematics were large enough"

This also works when you are looking at your bank account over the Internet. :-)

Oh, this is wonderful news. With every pixel twice the size of an iPod pixel, I won't need new reading glasses! And at generous 7.2 inches the screen is just slightly smaller than my original 9" b&w Apple IIe monitor. The plastic housing will be able to flex and give, shouldI sit on it by mistake. Good news indeed.